The end game in BDO can be pretty harsh. It either means investing a lot of time and money to get geared up quick or taking your time to get what you need in pieces slowly. Sometimes painfully slow, but patience helps.

When you’re trying to balance real life and a game as time intensive as BDO the grind can get to be a bit much. Especially at the end game level.

At this point I’m still working on getting my gear leveled up one bit at a time. It’s a much slower process for me than for folks with more time and in game resources but I’m managing. At the same time I’m also working on getting at least a solid tier 7 horse, I’ve even got a couple of chances at some tier 8’s. Just cross everything for me if you will because my luck with horse breeding is so-so at best.

Chance

I get a pretty wide range of horses, but not always the best. That’s horse breeding in a nutshell though. You never know what you’re going to get.

It’s still an interesting side project for me though. I always love seeing what RNG will toss at me next.

As for RP, well we tried going out to one of the RP hubs last night and it was a thing. We’ll probably stick to one day a week of public RP then keep to guild story lines.

Honestly I don’t mind that too much. I prefer RP with my guild mates at this point. They’re a great crew and I’m lucky to have them.

I may not be lucky in BDO, but I am lucky with my guild so that’s something.

Speaking of the guild I’m hoping to focus on leveling it up a bit. We’re slowly getting this and that maxed and we’ve got a decent amount stored up in the bank. Thing is though if we’re going to want to build a boat eventually when the sea content launches we’re going to need a lot more.

The guild is motivated enough on that front and we get guild missions in when we can, when we feel like it, when we have energy (and sometimes when we don’t) and when we remember. For me the remembering is the hardest part.

I’ve been struggling in game to come up with just what I want to do. Finding ways to make some coin while not actively spending a lot of time in the game is tough. I’m working on some different capital avenues that I’m hoping will pay off.

The game is pretty geared toward grinding as a primary form of income and that does work great and means that people who are putting in the effort get the best results. That makes sense. Though there’s something to be said for the folks that pretty much just want to be support and still want gear strong enough to survive when you can’t stop yourself from hitting the pvp cap.

Granted in BDO the pvp side of the game is over hyped. If you stick it out and get enough gear and levels, especially when you can get an awakened class, you can stand up for yourself pretty well. Really it’s just a matter of dedication and outlasting the other folks.

That’s pretty much what I plan on doing. I may not be the best in the game, but I look at it this way. If I can make some coin, breed a good horse and enjoy RP, I’m getting my money’s worth. That’s all that matters for me.

At the moment things are coming together in BDO. Well aside from the fact that I really need to put some more levels on the Witch, but I’ll get to it.

She’s sitting at 51 and I’m working on getting her geared up. At the moment she has pretty much what she needs, I just need to buff it up. Everything needs levels from her armor to her horse.

It’ll happen slowly but surely.

So far the Witch has been a pretty handy addition to the guild as well. It makes scroll nights go pretty fast even with less than a full group. Disco balls also go REALLY fast. But that’s probably due more to the 55’s we have hitting them more than my DPS. On the bonus side though the heals alone are saving us all a ton on pots.

GrimFire is also fitting into RP in the guild since a combat medic is something the guild could really use. RP wise they have fighters and staff, but there’s not really a healer so that’s a good fit.

I’m also setting up an infirmary to add a little bonus RP to the server. I’ll be in the same place my guild hangs out but at least it’s something to do. The nice thing about having a medic around is that people get a chance to RP out a wounded character getting treatment.

All kinds of chaos can happen in and around an infirmary.

Once I get that going I plan on working on a journal for GrimFire. So far she’s becoming an interesting character.

Well it’s time to get back to fishing so I can make enough to get my armor repaired. So I can blow it out again and build up failstacks.

My witch has gone through a physical overhaul. Mostly to suit my own madness but also to set her up with a physical presence that can sync with a plausible back story.

RP can be a pain in the ass because you’re not only pretending to be someone else, but at the same time you’re reacting to things the way that character would react to things. There also isn’t really anyone telling you if you’re getting it right. Though sometimes fellow RP’rs will give you a hand with this if you ask them.

Something that can make it a lot easier to figure out how your character would respond to something is basically understanding their who they are, where their from, and what drives them.

One way to do this is to just RP and get a feel for how you want them to play out. That works and over time you can build up an idea of how your character responds to the world around them. This method is great when starting up in a game that’s just launched when nobody is really sure about the lore and everyone is in the same boat you are.

Once a game has been around for a bit, it can be harder to just RP your way into a character and role. Most people are settled into their characters and guilds. They also usually have a good idea of the lore and how things work in game. This is where either looking into wikis and forums or just picking people’s brains really comes in handy.

Otherwise you could end up with the cat-girl, vampire, Pokemon catching, mercenary that everyone is loath to RP with because they sit so far outside the game lore that it’s not even funny anymore. While granted RP is completely fiction and people are free to RP however they want, when you’re working with a group of people it can sometimes help to try to mold your character to the lore so that everyone is working from the same rule book.

It’d be like wanting to play monopoly but using the rules from chutes and ladders. It can make for some very unique and creative game play, but you’re probably not going to get very far. Especially if everyone else at the table is still playing Monopoly and staring at you like you’ve got a third eye.

This is where the backstory can come in handy. If you can tie it in with the lore, then you can explain where your character has been up until the point you started to RP with them. These experiences in their lives can be catalysts for how they react in certain situations and just give you a general feeling for how they’d behave the rest of the time.

There’s a few schools of thought on backstories. Some people refuse to make them and other people really enjoy making sure that they tell you every detail of this hand crafted back story they’ve come up with. On a slow RP day that’s not too bad, but it’s not always the wisest move to be the guy or gal at the moody table brooding over your character’s past instead of engaging the RP around them.

The thing about backstories is that you want to create something plausible without being totally over the top. It also helps if you don’t focus on one aspect of that character’s existence, but weave in some good and bad things that have happened to them so that they’re more of a real person than say a one dimensional character that is only motivated by one or two emotions like say revenge, anger or even lust.

I try to make balanced semi plausible back stories though I’m sure I still have a long way to go in perfecting the craft. At this point I’m trying to pull something together for my Witch. Thing is though I’m just not sure where to start her out and whether she’ll be worked in with my other characters or not.

So the main questions I’m asking are:

Where did she come from? This can also count for class if you’re placing them in a class based society or a faction if that’s more the flavor of the game. Race can also play a hand in this if your character is a unique flavor of race.

What is her family situation like? Is she all alone in the world or does she have a loving family back home?

What does her resume look like? What is her education and background?

Who does she already know? Does she know your existing characters, your friend’s characters, does she need to be introduced to your guild?

What does she currently want out of life? While a little deep, this one though can help figure out what path this character is going to take and who she’ll want to associate with.

Now with these questions to work at I’ll have to figure something out. Like what town she’s from, who she knows and what her life has been like.

If you really want to get detailed having a timeline set by the game timeline can help you keep your fictional facts strait. You don’t have to invest that kind of time unless you’re like me and details start to pick at you.

As for the character creator, the BDO character creator gives you a lot of options. If you’re not sure what you want to do you can always create the character first giving them specific features like age and skin tone, then start to build their background based partially on how they look.

With my witch here she has a large facial scar and a damaged eye. Now I get to figure out where that came from and how that impacts her life. Pretty sure that having trouble seeing from one eye is going to have an impact on how a person perceives the world around them.

You can add scars, go with bold hair styles or just make one buff war veteran. It’s totally up to you. Having the game lore as a framework helps a lot, it can stave off the blank page syndrome that can make it really daunting just to get started.

Anyway, it looks like I have some thinking to do with my fishing today. Until next time, have fun!

Category: Black Desert Online, RP |
Comments Off on BDO-RP: Characters, Backstory, and the Character Creator

Here’s a little something that I want to start up tracking stories for my character, a blue eyed and blue haired elf that goes by the name Strat.

Strat’s story currently revolves around an Inn in Epheria (in Black Desert Online) where her penchant for rum lead her to an interesting group of people and a contract.

Now aside from making a meager living in trading she has her own agenda as well as doing what she can for her new found friends.

This is one part of the tale.

Forcing open eyes that really just want to stay glued shut, Strat rolls to the side. Looking around the room she realizes slowly that she must have rented a room in Olvia. She vaguely remembers The Greenie Meanie asking for a ride. Probably more to make sure that the horses made the journey safe rather than out of concern for her.

That wouldn’t bother Strat. Her fraternizing days are long over. There’s too much to get done currently. Not even the smooth talking Quartermaster could change her perspective on that note. That is if she wasn’t well aware that the meanie’s sister is currently the Quartermaster’s prime concern.

Sighing heavily, she looks over at a bag she must have dragged in from the wagon. Digging into the contents she looks for and pulls out the alchemy potion she picks up just for Wednesday mornings. It tastes terrible and barely does anything, but it’s cheap and helps with the pain. When she has to be sober anything is better than dealing with the constant aches.

While the pain has been getting better, she still wakes up sore in the morning. It’s been about 7 months since Gachi found her almost bled out on the forest floor. But at her age Strat doubts she’ll ever get back to what she was before she was injured.

The worst part is that Strat still has a price on her head. Boredom, wealth and jealousy turned out to be a very bad combination for Strat. She thought she’d loved her ex, but love wasn’t enough to keep him out of the arms of another woman. A very rich, very noble, and very possessive woman who’d levied a price on Strat’s head as soon as she found out about her.

Strat had no idea her ex had been unfaithful until she found herself alone in the forest with an assassin at her throat. She’d managed to take the man down, but not without nearly getting herself killed.

Despite all of that, Gachi had come into her life and now the Bones crew. All of which felt more like family than Strat had ever known. For a change it felt as though life wasn’t trying to kick Strat in the teeth.

Of course this terrified her because that could only mean that things were bound to go to hell sooner rather than later. That seemed to be her luck.

Strat turns as she hears footsteps on the stairs. Picking up her blade she stands next to the door. She hears two knocks then a small voice on the other side. “It’s just me.” Gachi states with an angry tone.

Strat reaches over to turn the handle and pulls the door open letting the much shorter woman into the room.

Gachi all but stomps inside. Crossing her arms she dons a stern expression and practically glares at the much taller and older ex mercenary.

“You were supposed to be back in Heidel last night.” She says angrily.

“I just wanted to leave the wagon somewhere safe.” Strat says with a disarming smile. She sheaths her blade at her back and places her hand on her hip.

“Where’s your bow?” Gachi asks “And for that matter why are you looking more like yourself than wearing that leather get up and mask you purchased?”

Grunts a little. “After recent events I’m training in some additional combat tactics. Also that leathery get up just didn’t feel like me. If someone is actually willing to take that crazy woman’s contract they’ll know where to find me and a mask isn’t going to change that.”

Looking around the meager accommodations of the Olvia Inn Gachi wrinkles her small nose and scowls slightly.

Strat chuckles softly watching the tiny ex noble. Looking over the room Strat sees her boots next to the window propped up against a convenient chair. She crosses the room, sits and begins to pull on her boots.

“Don’t tell me you slept in your clothes again.” Gachi says sighing.

Strat chuckles once more. Gachi having lead the sheltered life of a noble wouldn’t begin to fathom the experiences that shaped the odd blue haired elf.

“I did take my boots off.” Strat says with a wide smile. “Last time they charged me double for getting dirt in the bed.”

Gachi rolls her eyes at Strat, her arms still crossed. Strat chuckles and stands.

“Not that I’m not always happy to see you Gachi, but what brings you all the way out here?” Strat asks as she stands and walks over to Gachi. Standing before the much smaller woman she cocks her hip and lowers her shoulders as to not appear to loom over her.

“We have an appointment with the tailor” Gachi says angrily “He is not the kind of man you keep waiting.”

“Why would a man make dresses?” Strat asks crossing her arms.

“Because it makes a lot of silver if you’re good at it.” Gachi says matter of factly. “You’re the one that said you needed a dress, I made the arrangements.”

“I figured we’d just stop by a window shop and I could just grab something.” Strat says nonchalantly rolling her hand in a gesture indicating that Gachi is making way too much out of Strat’s request.

“Nonsense” Gachi says. “You agreed to help me get my family’s name back and I agreed to help you get the price of your head. We’ll be able to use your elven good looks to pull that off, but we won’t be able to do that while you’re wearing either your armor or a dress from a no chique boutique.”

Strat shrugs her shoulders and shifts her weight before replying. “If you say so.”

“I don’t tell you how to stab people and you don’t tell me how to, as you usually state it, be a poncy noble.” Gachi says rolling her eyes and her hand mimicking Strat’s hand gesture.

Strat chuckles. “Well if you ever need to know how to spend a night in the forest…”

Gachi cuts her off with a hand gesture. “I prefer inns.” pausing she looks over the room with her nose pinched as if she smelled something rotten. “Though not this one.”

Strat laughs as she walks over to pick up her bag from beside the bed and then back to Gachi. “It’s Olvia. There’s barely anything of note here beyond cows and grapes. They don’t even make wine here, that’s over in Velia. Why would they have a fancy inn?”

“You could have stayed in Velia then, or even Calpheon. Both have even moderately better accommodations than this.” Gachi says as she gestures toward the room. “One day Strat you might begin to appreciate the finer things in life.”

Strat smiles widely. “I already do!” She says enthusiastically as she slings the bag across over her shoulder letting it rest across her back. She begins counting on her fingers as she names them, “I enjoy Siren rum, sunrises, a good horse and wagon, oh and every day I wake up above ground.”

Gachi sighs again. “Strat that is just not fair and you know it.” Turning on her heel she begins stomping down the stairs, well as heavily as her small light frame will allow.

Chuckling Strat nods and follows Gachi. Today was likely to be a long day.